Tuesday, 7 January 2014

V Magazine: Brit Pop's New Faces

Text Joseph 'JP' Patterson
A fast-moving stream of pleasing-to-the-ear (and soul) pop music began surfacing in the British Isles in 2013—and we’re not talking bubblegum pop, either. We’re talking about the kind of melodic, R&B-tinged music that owns the blogosphere and airwaves upon the arrival of every release; the kind of pop that marries electronic dance music with the more subversive, to the joy of partygoers who love a good sing-a-long between shuffles.

Notably, most of the genre’s newest creatives are young, black, and unafraid to stand outside of the "urban" box. And trust: your favorite rapper is probably searching for that hot pop hook to put on their next record right this second and UOENO.

UK dance beatsmiths Rudimental, Chase & Status, Duke Dumont, and Gorgon City have been known to use these fresh-faced crooners as their musical muses, for tunes which have gone on to top the charts, and amass millions of SoundCloud and YouTube plays. One collab even received a Grammy Award nomination recently: Duke Dumont’s single, Need U (100%), feat. A*M*E and MNEK is up for Best Dance Recording at the 2014 ceremony. So Join VMAN.COM as we welcome some of the new kids on Britpop’s block in 2014...